“Just please ask for my help if you need it. You know I like you, so you should use it more. Please give me a chance to be used by you.”

“Used by… Edgar, you are really weird.”

He was saying she should use him. He was saying she should be with him for now and could go to another man later. Where on earth did that proud duke she met at first go?

Rubica carefully stroked his hair as he pleadingly looked at her. His black hair was as black as the night and as soft as velvet. That gesture let Edgar know she was forgiving him.

“Rubica, from now on…”

“Wait.”

Rubica was enchanted by his beauty once again and thought about what he had just said. Then, she narrowed her eyes.

“Thinking about it now, you’ve been pressing me to tell you and ask for your help if I had any problem.”

She could see his neck moving to gulp.

“You were talking about Isaac’s matter written in Angela’s letter, right?”

Now there’s no use in denying it.

“Yes.”

“And when I didn’t tell you, you got mad and bought all those things to tease me?”

“I wasn’t teasing… ah!”

Rubica mercilessly pulled his ear. It was something she wouldn’t have even dreamed of doing when they first met.

“Admit it! Do you know what kind of trouble I am in right now because of all those things you’ve sent me?”

Rubica was now famous as the duchess who was desperately trying to stop the duke from spending money like crazy. And thanks to that, her plan of being called extravagant was now impossible.

Edgar was born rich, and when he was determined to spend, what he did was beyond the imagination of the poor. How could the world be so unfair even when spending money?

“I admit it.”

“Promise you will not spend your wealth just out of anger ever again.”

“I… can’t.”

Rubica pulled his ear hard again but, this time, he shut his mouth tightly and didn’t surrender. At first, he had been mad, but later, he started to enjoy the pleasure of buying things for her.

“Edgar, your ear hurts a lot, right? So promise me now.”

He just silently shook his head and she scolded him again, but they were both smiling broadly.

***

Rubica decided to host her tea meeting near the garden’s fountain. She also planned to decorate the place with Sesar’s roses, and Lord Sesar was quite proud of it.

“You planned such a wonderful event to introduce my roses… Your Grace, I am really touched. You are the only one who appreciates the greatness of my work.”

Rubica opened her mouth to correct his misunderstanding, but then she was shocked to hear the announcement he made right after that.

“That is why I’ve decided to name this rose ‘Rubica’.”

“No, you’re not doing that!”

He was going to name his rose after her?

Was embarrassing her a hobby of the people in the mansion or something? Lord Sesar complained that Rubica wasn’t accepting his praise for her, and she could only barely convince him.

They decided to call it ‘Taylor Rose’ after one of the most famous names in Claymore. Edgar, who didn’t like the thought of everyone just calling Rubica’s name, happily agreed to it.

Anyway, the fountain and the Taylor Roses looked extremely good together. They put the table in accordance with each guest’s taste and decorated them with table cloths and napkins they had worked hard on.

In the meantime, Steven kept making all kinds of desserts. At first, he was fooled by Rubica to make cakes, but soon he realized it made him happier than when he would make any other dish.

He wanted to see those picky nobles exclaim at his desserts, so he filled all the tables with them.

“Ann, the weather is so good.”

“Yes, I was worried it might rain, but the day is so clear.”

Finally, the day had come. Jennie had been working on Rubica’s skin for three days for this day. And, after two weeks of discussion, they decided to use Taylor Rose on her hair instead of using other luxurious hair accessories.

-The flower exists only here for now. I think it is more valuable and meaningful than any other jewel.

Moreover, Rubica excluded all those luxurious necklaces, fans, and parasols Edgar had bought in the meantime.

Each of them was pretty, but none of them matched her dress. Rubica wasn’t an idiot who used jewels that didn’t match just to boast about her wealth. Instead, she took great care in selecting the silverware the guests would use.

“Oh, that’s Countess Tangt’s carriage.”

Ann pointed at one of the mana stone carriages that were arriving in line. A middle-aged lady with fiery red hair came out with two girls. She looked confident as if she was born as a noble lady of high rank.

“Will I be able to do it well?”

Rubica got suddenly scared. Her palms were sweating, but Ann held her hand tightly.

“Of course. We’ve done our best to prepare for this.”

“But what if I make a mistake…”

“If anyone points it out, His Grace will not let that person off.”

Rubica didn’t know what had happened to Zilehan and thought Ann was saying that just to encourage her. But somehow, thinking of Edgar calmed her down.

She smiled at the window of his office that looked down on the garden. The thin curtain had been drawn, but she was sure he was watching her.

“Good afternoon, Countess Tangt. This is Duchess Claymore.”

Rubica smiled naturally at the lady who was wearing a gold-colored dress that matched her red hair well. As instructed on her invitation, she was wearing a calm dress, but she didn’t forget to make herself seen by wearing a necklace made of hundreds of yellow diamonds. It turned out she had a great sense of fashion, just like the rumors said.

“Congratulations on your pregnancy. I am so happy to meet you. Oh, and this is my daughter Gabriel, and this is Tatiana, daughter of Viscount Chartle.”

Countess Tangt was talkative, just like Edgar had said. Rubica could barely find a moment to say hello to the two girls.

“Nice to meet you, Ms. Chartle.”

It seemed like the countess had brought Ms. Chartle with her as her family didn’t have mana stone carriages. As people said about her, Tatiana was a mature and beautiful lady. Rubica had heard the countess had already picked her as his son’s wife.

“Nice to meet you, Ms. Tangt.”

Then, Rubica said hello to the girl next to Ms. Chartle, but she was shocked to see her.

The girl was short and only came up to her friend’s shoulder. She had round cheeks just like her mother, but she had them painted so red that it looked like there was something wrong with her skin.

Moreover, her eyebrows painted in black were clearly not right for her red hair, and Rubica didn’t even want to start on the dress that tried to make her look like a mature lady.

“Gabriel.”

Gabriel, who was staring at Rubica, woke up by her friend’s whispering and smiled shyly.

‘Oh, she’s so cute.’

At least her smile was childish and cute, but it was hidden beneath her thick makeup and only Rubica could notice it.

“It is my honor to meet you, Your Grace. Um… your dress is so pretty!”

What she had been staring at were the ribbons on Rubica’s dress that were fluttering in the wind. Rubica blushed at the girls’ sudden compliment.

“Gabriel.”

However, only Rubica was glad to hear that. Gabriel could read a warning in her mother’s low voice. She should have complimented the duchess’s beauty, not her dress.

“I, I didn’t mean you were not pretty…”

In the end, Countess Tangt yelled at her daughter. She pulled Gabriel’s arm to hide her behind her back, then she covered her mouth with her fan to laugh.

“Oh, she is still so young and careless. Please do not take it seriously. She will be introduced to the society this year but… as you can see, she still has a lot to learn, so please be generous to her.”

Then, she left in a hurry, dragging her daughter with her.

“Oh, Gabriel, you are really giving your poor mother a hard time. Why are you so different from your sisters? They are all reserved. Can’t you be at least half as good as Tatiana?”

Her scolding made the girl slouch even more. However, Rubica wanted to go to her right away and tell her she wasn’t offended but rather happy about her compliment to the dress.

“Madam, the next guest.”

However, Rubica was the host of this meeting and had several guests to greet. She had no choice but to take her eyes off the poor girl and smile brightly at the next guest.

“Your Grace, it is my honor to meet you. I saw the flowers in the garden. They were so pretty that I kept exclaiming. What kind of flower is it?”

“It is Taylor Rose made by Lord Sesar.”

“He made a new flower? Wow… that is really remarkable.”

“Your dress is beautiful. Which designer made it?”

“It is Madam Khanna’s work.”

“Kha… nna. That name isn’t on the list of the designers in the capital.”

After that, she had to keep greeting and answering questions. Thankfully, they all liked Lord Sesar’s new rose and her dress. They even carefully asked about the ribbons that decorated Rubica’s dress. She gave them a simple answer and then Ann and Elise explained the details.